nence.

Beware of censoriousness; thinking or calling them that any ways oppose you, whether in judgment or practice, blind, dead, fallen, or "enemies to the work." Once more, beware of Solifidianism; crying nothing but "believe, believe :" and condemning those as ignorant or legal who speak in a more scriptural way. At certain seasons, indeed, it may be right to treat of nothing but repentance, or merely of faith, or altogether of holiness: but in general our call is to declare the whole counsel of God, and to prophesy, according to the analogy of faith. The written word treats of the whole, and every particular branch of righteousness, descending to its minutest branches, as to be sober, courteous, diligent, patient, to honour all men. So likewise the Holy Spirit works the same in our hearts, not merely creating desires after holiness in general, but strongly inclining us to every particular grace, leading us to every individual part of whatsoever is lovely. And this with the greatest propriety: for as by works faith is made perfect, so the completing or destroying the work of faith, and enjoying the favour or suffering the displeasure of God, greatly depends on every single act of obedience or disobedience.

Q. 35. What is the fourth?

A. Beware of sins of omission: lose no opportunity of doing good in any kind. Be zealous of good works: willingly omit no work, either of piety or mercy. Do all the good you possibly can to the bodies and souls of men. Particularly, "thou shalt in any wise reprove thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him." Be active. Give no place to indolence or sloth: give no occasion to say, "Ye are idle, ye are idle." Many will say so still; but let your whole spirit and behaviour refute their slander. Be always employed: lose no shred of time: gather up the fragments, that none be lost. And whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might. Be slow to speak, and wary in speaking. "In a multitude of words there wanteth not sin." Do not talk much: neither long at a time. Few can converse profitably for above an hour. Keep at the utmost distance from pious chit-chat, from religious gossiping. Q. 36. What is the fifth?

A. Beware of desiring any thing but GOD. Now you desire nothing else. Every other desire is driven out: see that none enter again. "Keep thyself pure :" "Let your eye remain single, and your whole body shall be full of light." Admit no desire of pleasing food, or any other pleasure of sense: no desire of pleasing the eye or the imagination, by any thing grand, or new, or beautiful: no desire of money, or praise, or esteem: of happiness in any creature. You may bring these desires back; but you need not: you need feel them no more. O stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made you free.

Be patterns to all, of denying yourselves, and taking up your cross daily. Let them see that you make no account of any pleasure which does not bring you nearer to God; nor regard any pain which does that you simply aim at pleasing him, whether by doing or

:

suffering: that the constant language of your heart, with regard to pleasure or pain, honour or dishonour, riches or poverty, is,

All's alike to me, so I

In my Lord may live and die!

Q. 37. What is the sixth?

A. Beware of schism, of making a rent in the church of Christ. That inward disunion, the members ceasing to have reciprooal love one for another, (1 Cor. xii. 25,) is the very root of all contention, and every outward separation. Beware of any thing tending thereto. Beware of a dividing spirit: shun whatever has the least aspect that way. Therefore say not, "I am of Paul, or of Apollos;" the very thing which occasioned the schism at Corinth. Say not, "This is my preacher; the best preacher in England; give me him, and take all the rest." All this tends to breed or foment division, to disunite those whom God hath joined. Do not run down any preacher. Do not exalt any one above the rest, lest you hurt both him and the cause of God. On the other hand, do not bear hard upon any, by reason of some incoherency or inaccuracy of expression; no, nor for some mistakes, were they really such.

Likewise, if you would avoid schism, observe every Rule of the Society, and of the Bands, for conscience' sake. Never omit meeting your Class or Band: never absent yourself from any public meet. ing. These are the very sinews of our society; and whatever weakens, or tends to weaken, our regard for these, or our exactness in attending them, strikes at the very root of our community. As one saith," that part of our economy, the private weekly meetings, for prayer, examination, and particular exhortation, has been the greatest means of deepening and confirming every blessing, that was received by the word preached, and of diffusing it to others, who could not attend the public ministry: whereas, without this religious connexion and intercourse, the most ardent attempts by mere preaching, have proved of no lasting use."

Suffer not one thought of separating from your brethren, whether their opinions agree with yours or not. Do not dream that any man sins in not believing you, in not taking your word; or that this or that opinion is essential to the work, and both must stand or fall together. Beware of impatience of contradiction. Do not condemn or think hardly of those who cannot see just as you see, or who judge it their duty to contradict you, whether in a great thing or a small. I fear some of us have thought hardly of others, merely because they contradicted what we affirmed. All this tends to division. And by every thing of this kind we are teaching them an evil lesson against ourselves.

O beware of touchiness, or testiness; not bearing to be spoken to: starting at the least word; and flying from those who do not implicitly receive mine or another's sayings!

Expect contradiction and opposition, together with crosses of va rious kinds. Consider the words of St. Paul, "To you it is given

in the behalf of Christ," for his sake, as a fruit of his death and intercession for you, "not only to believe, but also to suffer for his sake." Phil. i. 19. "It is given!" God gives you this opposition or reproach it is a fresh token of his love. And will you disown the Giver? Or spurn the gift, and count it a misfortune? Will you not rather say, "Father, the hour is come that thou shouldst be glorified. Now thou givest thy child to suffer something for thee. Do with me according to thy will." Know that these things, far from being hinderances to the work of God, or to your soul, unless by your own fault, are not only unavoidable in the course of Providence, but profitable, yea, necessary for you. Therefore receive them from God, (not from chance,) with willingness, with thankfulness. Receive them from men with humility, meekness, yieldingness, gentleness, sweetWhy should not even your outward appearance and manner be soft? Remember the character of Lady Cutts: "It was said of the Roman Emperor, Titus, never any one came displeased from him. But it might be said of her, never any one went displeased to her. So secure were all, of the kind and favourable reception which they would meet with from her."

ness.

Beware of tempting others to separate from you. Give no offence which can possibly be avoided: see that your practice be in all things suitable to your profession, adorning the doctrine of God our Saviour. Be particularly careful in speaking of yourself: You may not indeed deny the work of God: but speak of it, when you are called thereto, in the most inoffensive manner possible. Avoid all magnificent, pompous words. Indeed you need give it no general name. Neither "perfection, sanctification, the second blessing, nor the having attained." Rather speak of the particulars which God has wrought for you. You may say, " At such a time I felt a change which I am not able to express. And since that time I have not felt pride, or self-will, or anger, or unbelief: nor any thing but a fulness of love to God and to all mankind." And answer any other plain question that is asked, with modesty and simplicity.

And if any of you should at any time fall from what you now are if you should again feel pride, or unbelief, or any temper from which you are now delivered; do not deny, do not hide, do not disguise it at all, at the peril of your soul. At all events, go to one in whom you can confide, and speak just what you feel. God will enable him to speak a word in season, which shall be health to your soul. And surely he will again lift up your head, and cause the bones that have been broken to rejoice.

Q. 38. What is the last advice that you would give them?

A. Be exemplary in all things: particularly in outward things, (as in dress,) in little things, in the laying out of your money, (avoiding every needless expense,) in deep, steady seriousness, and in the solidity and usefulness of all your conversation. So shall you be a fight shining in a dark place. So shall you daily "grow in grace tilf an entrance be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Most of the preceding advices are strongly enforced in the following reflections: which I recommend to your deep and frequent consideration, next to the holy Scriptures.

1. The sea is an excellent figure of the fulness of God, and that of the blessed Spirit. For as the rivers all return to the sea; so the bodies, the souls, and the good works of the righteous, return to God, to live there in his eternal repose.

Although the graces of God depend upon his mere bounty, yet is he pleased generally to attach them to the prayers, the instructions, and the holiness of those with whom we are. By strong, though invisible attraction, he draws some souls through their intercourse with others.

The sympathies formed by grace far surpass those formed by

nature.

The truly devout show, that passions as naturally flow from true, as from false love, so deeply sensible are they of the good and evil of those whom they love for God's sake. But this can only be comprehended by those who understand the language of love.

The bottom of the soul may be in repose, even while we are in many outward troubles: just as the bottom of the sea is calm, while the surface is strongly agitated.

The best helps to grow in grace are the ill usage, the affronts, and the losses which befall us. We should receive them with all thankfulness, as preferable to all others, were it only on this account, that our will has no part therein.

The readiest way to escape from our sufferings is, to be willing they should endure as long as God pleases.

If we suffer persecution and affliction in a right manner, we attain a larger measure of conformity to Christ, by a due improvement of one of these occasions, than we could have done merely by imitating his mercy, in abundance of good works.

One of the greatest evidences of God's love to those that love him, is to send them afflictions with grace to bear them.

Even in the greatest afflictions we ought to testify to God, that in receiving them from his hand, we feel pleasure in the midst of the pain, from being afflicted by him who loves us, and whom we love.

The readiest way which God takes to draw a man to himself, is to afflict him in that he loves most, and with good reason; and to cause this affliction to arise from some good action done with a single eye: because nothing can more clearly show him the emptiness of what is most lovely and desirable in the world.

2. True Resignation consists in a thorough conformity to the whole will of God; who wills and does all (excepting sin) which comes to pass in the world. In order to this we have only to embrace all events, good and bad, as his will.

In the greatest afflictions that can befall the just, either from heaven or earth, they remain immovable in peace, and perfectly submissive to God, by an inward, loving regard to him, uniting in one all the powers of their souls.

We ought quietly to suffer whatever befalls us: to bear the defects of others, and our own, to confess them to God in secret prayer, or with groans which cannot be uttered: but never to speak a sharp or peevish word, nor to murmur or repine.

But be thoroughly willing, that God should treat you in the manner that pleases him. We are his lambs, and therefore ought to be ready to suffer, even to the death, without complaining.

We are to bear with those we cannot amend, and to be content with offering them to God. This is true resignation. And since he has borne our infirmities, we may well bear those of each other for his sake.

To abandon all, to strip one's self of all, in order to seek and to follow Jesus Christ, naked to Bethlehem, where he was born; naked to the hall, where he was scourged; and naked to Calvary, where he died on the cross, is so great a mercy, that neither the thing, nor the knowledge of it, is given to any, but through faith in the Son of God.

3. There is no love of God without patience, and no patience without lowliness and sweetness of spirit.

Humility and patience are the surest proofs of the increase of love. Humility alone unites patience with love, without which it is impossible to draw profit from suffering; or indeed to avoid complaint, especially when we think we have given no occasion for what men make us suffer.

True humility is a kind of self-annihilation; and this is the centre of all virtues.

A soul returning to God, ought to be attentive to every thing which is said to him on the head of salvation, with a desire to profit thereby. Of the sins which God has pardoned, let nothing remain but a deeper humility in the heart, and a stricter regulation in our words, in our actions, and in our sufferings,

4. The bearing afflictions, and suffering evils in meekness and silence, is the sum of a Christian's life.

God is the first object of our love: its next office is, to bear with the defects of others, and we should begin the practice of this amidst our own household.

We should chiefly exercise our love towards them who most shock either our way of thinking, or our temper, or our knowledge, or the desire we have that others should be as virtuous as we wish to be ourselves.

5. God only gives his Spirit even to those whom he has established in grace, if they do not pray for it on all occasions, not only once, but many times.

God does nothing but in answer to prayer; and even they who have been converted to God, without praying for it themselves, (which is exceeding rare,) were not without the prayers of others, Every new victory which a soul gains, is the effect of a new prayer.

On every occasion of uneasiness we should retire to prayer, that we may give place to the grace and light of God, and then form our